1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a communication system that allows communication of body position(s) through haptic communication. More specifically, this pertains to an automated haptic communication system.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Specific environments are characterized by individual and team decision makers who may be spatially (line of sight) separated and must coordinate to share information and resources to attain mission goals in dynamic and uncertain situations. Examples of such environments include, but are not limited to military, law enforcement, medical, first responder, etc. In addition to communications between team members, communications between team members and robotic platforms are also required. Communications between team members in a military environment include radio, voice, and hand-and-arm signal communications. Currently, communication and situational awareness of unit members may be limited during military operations. Radio communications between unit members are often transmitted and received on a single channel creating a communication challenge as only one given unit member can transmit information at any given time. Voice and voice-over-radio communications are also limiting in situations in which noise discipline must be maintained, as well as situations in which combat noises drown out voice communications. Standard hand-and-arm signal communications can be silently propagated from one team member to another within line of sight. However, this takes time and requires additional attention in order to receive commands. In addition, hand-and-arm signals are vulnerable to enemy interception.
Communications between robotic platforms and human operators may also be limited. Robotic assets, often used in hostile areas, perform tasks that are hazardous for humans. Such tasks include reconnaissance missions, searching a specific area to gather tactical intelligence, etc. Robotic assets combine sensors, such as laser range finders, sonar, global positioning systems, ultrasound, compasses, and digital video cameras, providing information about the world around them with a computational platform. A robotic asset is typically controlled from a remote location using an operator control unit, which exploits the operator's visual and auditory modalities, requiring the use of one or both of the operator's hands.
Accordingly, there is a need for a system that would provide for real-time capture of individual location and action information, as well as static and dynamic hand signals, to subsequently present this information to other team members and robotic assets in a manner not requiring exploitation of the auditory and visual modalities of team members. The above objective is met in the present by combining a sensor based gesture recognition system with representation of the sensed information to a remote team member via a haptic display.